Which organometallic compounds occur in nature?

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periodic table with group numbers and the s, p, d, and f blocks — organometallic compound The periodic table of the elements, displaying the group numbers and the s, p, d, and f blocks. Elements in the shaded area are the metals of organometallic chemistry.

Although organometallic compounds are generally unusual in biological processes, there are specific examples that occur in nature:

Vitamin B12 coenzyme: This essential biological molecule contains a cobalt-carbon (Co–C) bond, which is a defining feature of organometallic compounds.1
Dimethylmercury: This compound, with the formula $H_{3} C - H g - C H_{3}$ , is produced by certain bacteria as a mechanism to eliminate the toxic metal mercury from their environment.1

While these instances exist, the presence of metal-carbon bonds—where the carbon is part of an organic group—is not a common feature of most natural biological systems.12